>> Tuesday, 12 July 2011

There’s a certain instinctive understanding that develops after years of cooking together - from how you move between the work surfaces, to how to time things to ensure that bursts of activity work in synchronicity, a mutual unspoken agreement on the subtle balancing of flavours and ingredients... You can hear this almost telepathic way of working together in the specialist culinary phrases quietly murmured across the kitchen, such as "Oh god why's it doing that?"; "Try pouring beer on it"; and "What’s the number of that curry place that does deliveries?"

What impact do you think social networks and bloggers have had on the world of cooking and/or restaurant reviewing?

It's made everybody a lot hungrier. You can't even look at Twitter for more than a few minutes without somebody posting a picture of the amazing thing they're eating, or recounting their meal in loving detail. Twitter is basically a global communications platform dedicated to taunting you with descriptions of meat.

What's your most memorable kitchen disaster?

I always like to think that your greatest kitchen disaster lies ahead of you. It’s good to have something to aim for.

If you were marooned on a desert island, what food couldn't you live without?

Well, that would really depend on how many people were stranded there with you, and how tender they looked. No, hang on, wait... probably Tunnock's Caramel Wafers. Uh, yeah. Definitely that.

And finally (aside from bribery), what is the special element that will ensure that your team wins?

We know the number of that curry place that does deliveries.

Tom and Chris can always be relied upon to have a winning way with words, with NomNomNom De Plume as their team name last year, I didn't think they'd be able to better it. But Nom Chompsky is inspired!

About Nom Nom Nom

Now in its fifth year, Nom Nom Nom is a MasterChef style competition giving the internet's finest bloggers, food photographers and food writers the chance to compete against each other in a professional kitchen. To find out more click here